Pack Fever: Omegaverse Romance, page 30
I shake my head, the discomfort of our situation pressing in on me. “I’m okay, but have no idea what’s going on,” I admit. “We need to get out before they come back for us.”
Reed wastes no time, shuffling against the wall to leverage himself up to his feet. He steadies himself before turning his attention to me. “I have a blade in my pants. I need you to grab it,” he instructs, his tone urgent.
Relief washes over me because that’s exactly what I need to hear. We have a weapon for a fast escape.
Mimicking his actions, I use the wall for support, managing to stand despite the awkward angle of my bound hands. I turn my back to him, allowing me access to his pocket, my fingers fumbling for his pocket as I attempt to locate the knife.
“Not there,” Reed hisses softly, a hint of urgency in his voice. “The pocket’s on the inside of my pants; you gotta go in from the top.”
I pause, casting a dubious glance over my shoulder at him. “Why do you have a pocket there?”
“For such situations,” he remarks sarcastically.
The tension in the air grows thick as I roll my eyes.
I press my bound hands against the top of his pants, searching for the inner pocket he mentioned. My fingers trembling slightly, I finally slip inside, grazing the heat of his skin. He’s making small moaning sounds, which only distracts me.
“You’re enjoying this too much,” I say.
“Not at all. I hate you having your hand down my pants.” His sarcasm is in overdrive today.
I fumble for a moment before my fingertips brush against the small, cool metal of the pocketknife. A wave of relief washes over me as I grasp it, ready to cut us free from our bindings and face whatever comes next.
Reed’s hands are free first, and he quickly takes the small blade from me, his movements precise and efficient as he slices through the plastic ties binding my wrists. I’m shaking and constantly glancing at the door, scared that we’ll get busted.
“It’s going to be okay,” he whispers in my ear, his breath on my neck sending tingles down my spine.
Of course, it’s the wrong time to be turned on by Reed. Things between us are still confusing. He’s there for me and all my Omega needs, but the closeness between us is still evolving into what I have with Jasper and Seth.
Free of his ties, Reed is kneeling in front of me, cutting me free at my ankle, then glances up with that ridiculous smile that melts me. Short, dark blond hair is messy around his face.
Finally, he gets to his feet, towering over me. Then he checks his pockets.
“Of fucking course. They took my phone. Motherfuckers.” He sighs.
“I’m glad you’re with me,” I say softly.
He turns to me, pushing a stray lock off my face. “Me, too. I’d be beside myself if you vanished, and I had no idea where you were.”
Wait. Did he just admit to missing me?
Blade in hand, Reed cautiously approaches the door, his body tense, ready for whatever might lie beyond. I stay close, my heart pounding in my chest as he peers out into the dark hallway. The air is heavy with the scent of decay, the narrow corridor barely lit by the faint, flickering light bulb hanging from the ceiling.
We move out in silence, Reed taking my hand in his, our steps light as we navigate the shadowy passage. Every creak underfoot has me cringing. I strain my ears, certain I can hear the low murmur of voices, the occasional whimper that might be someone else caught in this nightmare. The uncertainty is maddening, the fear of the unknown a constant weight pressing down on us.
The house is a maze of dark, narrow hallways, each turn revealing nothing but more peeling wallpaper and the stench of rot. And no one around but those murmuring sounds I keep hearing now and then. Where in the world are we?
I keep glancing over my shoulder, my heart in my throat. I don’t even care at this stage to know who kidnapped us or why. I just want out of here.
As we round a corner, a figure looms out of the darkness, the sudden appearance so shocking, I barely have time to register the guard before the barrel of a gun smashes into Reed’s face. The sound is sickening, a brutal crack that echoes in the cramped space, and Reed crumples to the ground without a sound.
A scream tears from my throat, raw and filled with terror.
“You aren’t going anywhere, bitch!” the guard barks, coming for me.
It takes me two seconds to notice he’s not wearing a Nexus uniform. Seeing the scars on his face, the torn T-shirt, the location… nothing rings of a government institute.
“Don’t touch me,” I snap, retreating. “Who the fuck are you?”
He lunges for me, and all I see is darkness swallowing me.
Chapter
Twenty-Eight
JASPER
Seth’s frustrated curses echo across the penthouse, tearing through the tense silence that hangs like a thick fog in the air. I’m wound tight, a coiled viper of pent-up anger, every thought centered on Danica’s whereabouts and safety. The thought that Reed might let anything happen to her sends a surge of protectiveness roaring through me, a promise of retribution if a single hair on her head is harmed.
Approaching Seth, I can barely contain the urgency in my voice. “What the hell are you doing?” I demand, my gaze fixed on his agitated movements.
He’s tapping furiously on his phone, his expression darkening with each unsuccessful attempt. “This damn tracking app on all our phones is glitching, and I can’t get a lock on Reed’s location,” he growls, his frustration furrowing his brow.
The reality of his words hits me like a ton of bricks. “Wait, you’re tracking our phones? My fucking phone?” I can’t hide the shock in my voice.
“Of course,” Seth retorts, as if it’s the most obvious thing in the world. “How else am I supposed to keep an eye on all of you bastards, especially with fans who might pull a Misery on us?”
I’m torn between amusement at his reference to the book and a newfound appreciation for his paranoia.
“I can’t even be pissed at you, man. Your over-worrying might actually save Danica and Reed now,” I concede, a half-smile tugging at my lips.
Seth offers a wry grin in return. “Thank me later, once we find them,” he says before putting the phone back to his ear. “Yes, I need help with an urgent matter,” he states, then strides off into another room, his voice fading as he seeks assistance with the app.
Left alone in the living room, I pace restlessly, my steps eventually leading me to the doorway of my room. There, in the corner, lies the makeshift nest of our clothes, still bearing the faint scent of Danica. The sight, coupled with the indent in the mountain of clothes where she lay last, sends a sharp pang through my chest, an ache so profound, it feels like it might split me in two.
Since finding the pack, I’ve finally felt a sense of belonging, a real family. But even with that connection, we were incomplete until Danica came into our lives. The thought of losing her now, after just beginning to understand what it means to be whole, is unbearable. I’ve experienced enough loss and faced enough rejection from my real family to last a lifetime. Now that I’ve found something—someone—worth holding onto, I’ll do whatever the fuck it takes to keep her safe.
My hands fist into balls.
Nothing is too much for her.
Shaken by the depth of my emotions, I step back from the room, my throat tight with unspoken fears. Seth reenters the living room, his attention glued to his phone.
“It’s working,” he announces, a thread of hope woven through his words.
I sprint toward him, driven by a desperate need to see for myself, to find some clue to Danica’s whereabouts on that tracking app. The distance between us disappears in a heartbeat, my entire being focused on the glowing screen in Seth’s hand, on the flickering dot that might just lead us to her.
We follow the tracker’s signal deep into suburbia on the air-down photo of a part of the city that’s foreign to us. It’s marked by suburban streets and rows of houses, so starkly different from the chaos of the city. As the dot on the screen comes to a halt over a seemingly mundane neighborhood, I shoot Seth a questioning look.
“You sure that’s working right?” I ask.
“Fuck, it better be. The guy on the phone said it’s all fixed.”
The determination in his voice ignites a fire within me.
“Okay then, so let’s go down there now. I’m ready to destroy the fucker who took her and Reed from us.” My words are a vow, a promise of retribution. “And don’t bother calling the cops,” I add, the very idea leaving a bitter taste in my mouth.
“Wasn’t going to,” Seth shoots back, his agreement immediate. “Nexus owns most cops, and I’m not about to let them stand in our way. Hell no.”
Without another word, we’re sweeping through the penthouse, our movements swift. In moments, we’re in the car, Seth in the driver’s seat, his hands gripping the steering wheel with a white-knuckled intensity.
I quickly punch the address into the GPS, the coordinates leading us into the heart of the unknown. Seth floors the accelerator, and the car leaps forward. Every second away from Danica feels like an eternity. The city blurs past us, the urgency a tangible force that propels us forward.
“Okay, what’s our plan?” I ask. “Just burst in there and destroy them? Maybe we should have brought the guards with us, seeing we don’t know how many we’re dealing with. And we don’t have our handguns with us on the trip. But I brought a knife with me.”
Seth’s gaze remains fixed on the road ahead, his jaw grinding. “Nah, we do this alone. In case shit goes down, no one else is involved but us.”
“Works for me.” Means more fuckers for me to obliterate.
As we speed through the streets, every fiber of my being is on edge, the fear of what we might find clashing with the burning need to get to her to ensure she’s safe. The thought of Danica in danger is spurring us on.
We’re coming, little mouse.
Reed
Groaning, a hard hand against my back shoves me forward. I stumble into a dimly lit room, the bridge of my nose still screaming with pain after having the butt of a gun shoved into it. But I ignore that and snap back around, noting Danica’s already in the room, whimpering, hugging herself, and that sets off my caveman instinct.
“Let us the fuck out!” I snarl, lunging for the door, just as the man missing one front tooth grins at me and slams the door shut in my face.
“Stay in there like a good little dog!”
I drive my fists into the door, then tug on the handle, but we’re locked in.
Anger surges inside me, gnawing at me since this nightmare began.
“What the fuck do you want from us?”
All I hear in response is maniacal laughter, and the blood in my veins turns to lava. I spin to find the windows are boarded up from the outside, and on the inside, there are metal bars.
“Fuck!” Pacing, I scan the room for anything I could use to get us out of here, but the room’s frustratingly bare. Moving to Danica’s side, I take her into my arms, and she melts against me, her breathing erratic. I rub her back, saying, “I’ll find a way to get you out. I give you my word. I won’t let anyone hurt you.”
She’s sniffling, and when she cranes her neck back, those deep green eyes glistening with tears, my heart splinters in half. Fuck, seeing her scared is destroying me.
“Please don’t cry. It’s going to break me,” I say, catching a tear racing down her cheek. “Everything will be okay. I’ll make sure of it.”
“Will it? What do they want from us? And I don’t think they’re Nexus.” She glances at the door and back. Then she reaches up and wipes the blood from the cut on my nose with the sleeve of her shirt. “You’re bleeding.”
“I’ll be alright. It just hurts a bit, but nothing I won’t heal from. And I agree with you about them not being Nexus. Nexus wouldn’t be hiding out in a rundown old house like this one.”
As Danica clings to me, the silence between us thickens the tension. My heart’s thundering in my throat, not just from fear for our own safety, but with the daunting thought of how Seth and Jasper could possibly find us.
The silence is disrupted by the murmur of voices seeping into the room. I gently disentangle myself from Danica, signaling with a finger to my lips for silence. Then I edge closer to the door. Pressing my ear against the narrow gap, I strain to catch the muffled conversation on the other side. The voice of the guard who shoved us into the room is unmistakable, and I listen intently, trying to piece together their words.
“Why the fuck did you bring that Fever guy here? If we wanted low-key, then you and Tim fucked up! We’ll have everyone everywhere looking for him now,” one male voice hisses.
The shuffle of shoes against the floorboards signals another person’s movement.
“Shut the fuck up. It happened in a moment of panic. There’s only one solution. Put a bullet in his head, and let’s get rid of him,” comes the cold reply, a suggestion that chills me to the bone.
“Agree... but we gotta wait for Eric. He’s calling the shots,” the first voice concedes. “And he knows you brought the guy here.”
Who the hell is Eric? The question whirls in my mind, leaving me more confused. The realization that they hadn’t come for me but for Danica sends a wave of protectiveness surging through me.
Turning slightly, I catch Danica’s gaze. She’s moved closer, her ear also pressed to the door, mirroring my actions. In the dim light, her features are soft, yet her beautiful eyes are sharp with the same determination and fear that courses through me. At this moment, her beauty reminds me of what’s at stake—her life.
From the first time we met, Danica had an undeniable impact on me, her presence a force that both crashed into me and intimidated me. Now, faced with the possibility of losing her is heartbreaking.
We exchange a silent look, and I offer her a reassuring smile.
She just blinks at me, the fear heavy in her expression.
The men’s voices filter through the door again.
“If it was me in charge,” one of them muses with a sinister edge to his words. “I’d get rid of him, dump him in the sea, then take my winnings. Two Omegas are better than one or none at all.” The callousness of his words sends a shiver down my spine.
Danica pales further, the blood draining from her face as she listens, her body tense beside me.
“Well, tell Eric that,” the other voice retorts dismissively. “He’s intent on finding the other girls because he stupidly sold them to buyers before he secured the four Omegas. He’s got Casey and now Danica. But I swear I saw a Nexus enforcer take one of the Omegas from that bus accident in the mountains. And no idea where the fourth one got to.”
They know her name! What the fuck?!
Danica’s mouth falls open in shock. She’d shared the harrowing tale of the bus accident, how the crash with the Nexus bus had scattered her and her friends to the storm and explosion. The thought that they were at the bus crash scene and that they’ve been tracking down the Omegas sends a wave of fear and anger crashing over us.
The voices lower, leaving us unable to hear them clearly, but they’re still there. I pull Danica close, her body trembling against mine. While they guard our door, there’s no use trying to escape, not yet anyway. I’ll bide my time a bit longer until I don’t hear them, then I’ll rip that fucking door off its hinges and get out.
“They have my friend, Casey, in here,” she hisses through clenched teeth, drawing my attention to the fire in her eyes. “They took her from the accident and want all four of us. They know who I am. Who the fuck are they? Because no way are they Nexus.” She’s shaking despite the rage behind her eyes.
Her determination and rage stir something within me, too.
“We’ll rescue her. I give you my word,” I assure her, my mind racing with plans of escape and rescue quicker than later. I start moving from one window to the second, tugging on the iron bars for any weaknesses.
“First, we need to get out of this room,” I explain softly. “Then we can find your friend and get the hell away from these lunatics.”
In the dim light of our grim surroundings, Danica’s strength shines through. She’s not completely losing her shit, and I admire her for that.
We take a seat on the floor in silence, the cool wall at our backs. Danica’s warmth seeps into me as I hold her close, trying to offer some semblance of comfort. The faint murmur of voices beyond the door is a constant reminder the guards are still watching over us.
“Thank you,” Danica whispers, her voice breaking the silence.
I shake my head. “You don’t need to thank me. I’ll always protect you,” I respond, the words more a vow than a statement.
But her gaze narrows, searching me for something else. “I don’t believe it’s always, just more recently... right?” she questions with soft words that slice through me.
“That’s not true,” I counter, even as doubt whispers through my thoughts.
She raises an eyebrow. “Reed, I like you a lot,” she admits. “From when we first met, you’ve been too stubborn to let yourself even see it, but I know you like me too, even if you’ve been pushing me away.”
Her words force a sigh from me. I shouldn’t be surprised she raised this topic, seeing it’s a time when I can’t escape from her. Me pulling away from her was something I reluctantly did more out of fear of my feelings for her. But she’s right. She deserves an explanation.
“For a long time, I believed I wasn’t the kind of person who settles down. That if I fell hard for you, I’d just leave you hurt, that I’d be like my father,” I confess, my memories still raw and vivid.
She watches me with concern in her eyes. “How so?”
The story pours out of me, feeling like a wound ripped open, and it stings like fuck.
“I still remember perfectly the day my father arrived home with news that he’d finally found his true Omega. The fucking bastard couldn’t even stop smiling while he said those words to my mom, a Beta. How he never thought he’d find someone so perfect for him.” The bitterness in my voice surprises even me.
